California, the origin and epicenter of the modern rideshare economy, is where the highest concentration of Uber accident claims is found, especially in the congested areas of Los Angeles. The only way to succeed in this complex legal environment is to have a thorough understanding of state-specific regulations and the unique role of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).

As the regulatory authority for Transportation Network Companies (TNCs), the CPUC requires Uber and other comparable platforms to maintain a minimum of $1 million in primary commercial liability coverage. This is in the event of death, personal injury, or property damage during the active stages of a ride. This non-contingent coverage is significant because it ensures high-level financial protection during active ride stages.

Combined with the already high cost of living in California, which raises medical treatment costs and projects future wage losses, the number of claims in cases of severe injuries is likely to have a significantly higher potential for high payouts. This makes the CA rideshare legal environment distinct.

California Special Insurance Periods

To successfully navigate an Uber claim, it is essential to understand the three separate stages, or periods of coverage, introduced under the state law of Assembly Bill 2293 (AB 2293). Partially codified in the California Insurance Code, this law outlines the mandatory insurance obligations that Transportation Network Companies (TNCs), like Uber, are required to maintain. It establishes the insurance obligations that govern the handling of rideshare accident claims.

Period 1: App On, Waiting for a Ride Request

Waiting for a ride request is the contingent period that begins as soon as the driver opens the Uber application, yet has not yet been assigned a ride request. In the event of an accident during this period, the coverage is significantly less compared to the time the passenger is in the car. The TNC must offer contingent liability insurance that applies if the driver’s personal insurance denies coverage (usually occurs when the driver is in a commercial activity).

  • Bodily injury liability—$50,000 per person or $100,000 per accident
  • Liability property damage—$30,000 per accident

These are larger than the statutory minimums required by California for small personal cars, but minimal compared to the coverage available once a trip begins.

Period 2: Ride Accepted, En Route to Pick Up Passenger

The starting point of this period is the moment a driver receives a passenger request, and the point of ending is the moment when the passenger is in the vehicle. The coverage automatically increases to the maximum level, which is $1 million in Primary Commercial Liability. In accepted ride claims, the TNC's commercial insurance carrier (large commercial insurers that have previously handled Uber's claims) will be the primary insurer, providing a significant safety net.

Period 3: On Trip, Passenger in Vehicle

The on-trip period applies when a passenger is in the vehicle. It starts as you get into the Uber up to the time you get out. As mentioned in the introduction, California law requires a limit of $1 million in Primary Commercial Liability to provide coverage for wrongful death and property damage caused by an accident involving the Uber driver.

The Critical Change to Uninsured Motorist (UM/UIM) Coverage

One of the crucial changes that has taken place recently affects the compensation available for catastrophic injuries. Although the $1 million limit on liability for accidents caused by Uber drivers remains unchanged, Senate Bill 371 (SB 371) has significantly altered the uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. This is the insurance applied in cases of a hit-and-run by an uninsured or underinsured driver.

The former regulation, AB 2293, obliged Uber to have UM/UIM coverage of $1 million while the passenger is in the vehicle. SB 371, however, has decreased this required amount to $60,000 per person or $300,000 per accident. This reduction effectively shifts more financial risk from TNCs to injured individuals, particularly in the extreme cases of injury where medical expenses soon surpass the new, lower levels. That distinction has become one of the most contentious and significant issues in California rideshare claims.

Are you an Uninsured Motorist?

Proposition 213 (codified as California Civil Code 3333.4), also known as the No Pay, No Play rule, is a significant law that aims to provide an incentive for all drivers to ensure they possess the legally required minimum liability insurance. The implications of this law are substantial for any person involved in an accident, regardless of whether a TNC fully insures the driver of the vehicle that hit you, like Uber.

If you were the driver or the owner of the car that was involved in the accident, and you were not covered by valid liability insurance during the time of the accident. In most cases, you will not be able to recover non-economic damages. Even when the Uber driver was entirely negligent. These non-economic damages are the compensatory damages to non-quantifiable losses in terms of subjects and contain the decisive elements of:

  • Physical pain and suffering
  • Psychological pain and suffering
  • Loss of enjoyment of life

More importantly, economic damages are still recoverable, encompassing tangible and verifiable losses such as medical expenses, lost earnings, and property damage. An immediate consequence of non-economic damages, however, is the loss of value resulting from being denied these damages.

Proposition 213 can drastically reduce the value of a claim. Take the example of a critical injury situation in which you lost earnings and medical expenses of $15,000. With insurance coverage, you can receive a total of approximately $100,000 in claim dollar value, including the non-economic element of pain and suffering. However, due to the application of Prop 213, the amount is automatically reduced to $15,000 in economic damages. This is a strong piece of legislation that would impose the financial cost of pain directly upon you as the uninsured injured party.

It is essential to note that Prop 213 does not cover vehicles owned by the insured individual. It does not apply to the following innocent parties who may claim all the compensation, including pain and suffering, irrespective of their insurance status:

  • Passengers — In the case that you were an injured passenger (and are not the owner of the uninsured car you were riding in), then you are fully exempt.
  • Pedestrians or cyclists — It is not limited to them, since they do not need to have vehicle insurance.
  • Accident victim who is the target of the DUI driver — In the case where the driver caused the accident and is found guilty of driving under the influence (DUI) in relation to the accident, you can still possibly recover full non-economic damages.

The Pure Comparative Negligence Rule of California

For any person involved in an accident with Uber or another vehicle in California, determining fault is the most significant aspect of the case, aside from insurance coverage and liability. California follows pure comparative negligence, unlike states that use modified comparative negligence.

In most states, it works as follows: once you are proved to have been at fault (50% or more) in an accident under the modified comparative negligence rule, you are barred from receiving any reparation. This is not the case in California.

California adheres to the pure comparative negligence rule. This means that even if you are in an accident in which you are likely the primary cause of the crash, and a jury apportions a percentage of the blame to you, you still have the right to receive damages in proportion to the rate of blame assigned to the other party (the Uber driver).

This regulation is essential, as in the case of contested Uber crashes, the rideshare firm's insurance will nearly always claim that you were partially at fault (for speeding, distracted driving, or failing to yield) to decrease their liability.

Your case is subject to the pure comparative negligence rule, which directly affects the valuation of your case at the end of it. The total amount of the damages you receive will merely be less by the proportion of the fault you have identified.

Example calculation:

  • Total damages — The jury or the parties are in agreement that your total damages (medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering) amount to $100,000
  • Fault allocation — If the evidence shows that, as the Uber driver ran a red light (70% fault), you were also speeding (30% fault). You are assigned 30% of the blame.
  • Final payout — The total amount that you will receive from a $100,000 award is $70,000 (the share of the Uber driver’s blame). Your share of the blame will reduce your compensation.

If you were in a "modified comparative negligence" state and found to be 51% at fault, you would receive nothing. In California, you would still be entitled to 49% of the award.

This rule is fundamental in Uber accident claims because, in the case of an Uber accident, it shifts the case from an all-or-nothing battle to a percentage-based battle of fault. Due to the Uber platform having high insurance limits ($1 million), the opposing legal team will likely attempt to place you at a significant percentage of blame, for example, 40%, 50%, or 60%. This allows them to significantly lower the amount they need to pay out under the large policy. Whether you can obtain a large settlement can depend solely on the extent to which you can minimize your percentage of negligence.

Calculating Damages

Any personal injury claim's final settlement value is the sum of two parts:

  • Economic Damages (measurable costs)
  • Non-Economic Damages (subjective losses)

Economic Damages

Economic damages compensate for all verifiable and quantifiable financial losses. These prices are significant in urban cities like Los Angeles (LA):

  • Medical Costs — First aid treatment is a huge cost driver. The average emergency room visit in California can cost over $2,900 before insurance adjustments. More severe incidents that necessitate multiple days of hospitalization, surgery, and specialist care can easily incur preliminary bills in the tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. The cost of physical therapy and specialty care is high due to their long-term nature.
  • Lost wages and earning capacity — Because the average pay in California is very high compared to the average in the nation, the lost wages calculation is automatically inflated. The compensation is based on the lost income in the past, which must be established through pay stubs and tax returns, as well as the loss of earning capacity. This is the future income that a person with severe injuries will not be able to earn during their lifetime. Forensic economists often estimate this loss in the future, resulting in substantial financial losses in high-earning industries.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages, also known as pain and suffering, provide compensation to the victim for physical discomfort, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment in life. These are typically computed using a multiplier (usually 1.5 to 5 times) of the total economic damages in California. The severity of the injury determines the multiplier.

The venue, however, is the real ingredient in maximizing this component. Juries in what are traditionally liberal and plaintiff-friendly counties, including Los Angeles (LA), Alameda, and San Francisco, are more prone to award much more serious non-economic damages than conservative counties. This is typically attributed to greater jury sympathy for the injured people when they are against a large corporation like Uber or its million-dollar insurance provider. A case involving the same injuries and economic damages can receive a significantly higher jury award in LA County than in a more conservative jurisdiction. Therefore, the geographical location of the trial is an essential element in the settlement negotiation plan.

How Passenger vs. Prop 22 Driver Status Determines All Available Claims in an Uber Accident

The classification of the injured party in an Uber accident (passenger or driver) is a key factor that determines the type of claims and the type of financial protection available. This separation puts the passenger on a much more definite path and gives the company the full benefit of the unconditional upper-end commercial policy. In contrast, the driver is guided through an entirely different system, specifically designed to target independent contractors.

In particular, a fare-paying passenger on an ongoing journey who is a rider is an innocent third party and, in turn, triggers the most comprehensive insurance coverage by Uber. This position provides the passenger with direct access to the $1 million primary commercial liability policy that Uber is required to carry. Due to the primary character of this coverage, the passenger obtains the right to the comprehensive spectrum of losses (both economic (medical costs, wage loss) and non-economic (pain and suffering) ones). This process is often faster and involves establishing the culpability of the driver or any other party concerned, which leads directly to a strong commercial insurer.

On the other hand, the Prop 22 category driver operates under a two-part compensation framework, as the legislation classifies them as independent contractors rather than employees. Thus, drivers will not be able to claim conventional Workers' Compensation benefits.

Instead, their claim of injury must be processed first by Occupational Accident Insurance (OAI). This is a no-fault, contract-based benefit that provides up to $1 million for medical care required and lost income in the form of disability payments incurred during the time online. In addition to the injury cover, there is also the Prop 22 structure, which offers a quarterly healthcare stipend, a subsidy designed to assist drivers in paying for their privately purchased health plans. However, they must satisfy the minimum requirements of engaged hours. This structure implies that the recovery of the driver is divided, with OAI covering the injury expenses of accidents, and a negligence action outside the company has to be taken against any of the responsible parties to recover non-economic damages.

The Statute of Limitations

The most pressing consideration in any California personal injury lawsuit is to meet the statutory time requirement of filing the lawsuit.

You have two years from the date of the accident to file a bodily injury or wrongful death lawsuit. Within which you can initiate a lawsuit against bodily injury or wrongful death, in accordance with the California Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) 335.1. Failure to meet this two-year deadline, missing the deadline even by one day, permanently bars your claim to be compensated by the insurer of Uber or the driver who caused your injury, no matter how serious your injury was.

The deadline for property damage claims is slightly higher at three years. Nevertheless, there is a critical exception when the accident concerns a governmental body, for example, a city bus or a vehicle owned by the municipality: you have to submit an administrative claim within just six months after the accident. Moreover, when a minor is hurt, the two years will be counted (interrupted) until he reaches 18, and it will provide a crucial extension to child victims.

Find a Personal Injury Attorney Near Me

It is easy to feel lost in the process of an Uber accident claim. However, it is the first realization of the potential value of the process, which depends on the severity of the injuries, medical expenses, and future effects, that will ultimately lead to the goal of financial recovery. You deserve maximum compensation for your suffering.

For a professional assessment of your case and aggressive legal representation, contact Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney today. Schedule your free, no-obligation case assessment to make sure that you can secure the maximum and fair settlement you deserve. Call us at 424-231-2013.